Today, Paramount Global, which owns CBS News, announced it will pay $16 million to President Trump’s library fund to settle his lawsuit over the editing of a “60 Minutes” interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris. The settlement also requires CBS to publicly release transcripts of future interviews with presidential candidates but includes no requirement for a public apology.
The timing of this settlement is particularly concerning given Paramount Global’s pending $8 billion merger with Skydance Media, which requires Federal Communications Commission approval to proceed. Separately, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr is considering a nonsensical complaint alleging CBS’s editing constituted “news distortion” and has opened the matter for public comment.
Public Knowledge contends that this lawsuit marks another example of President Trump weaponizing his immense influence to silence the free press – at the expense of our First Amendment rights.
The following can be attributed to Morgan Wilsmann, Policy Analyst at Public Knowledge:
“In his capacity as a private citizen, President Donald Trump claims he is owed $20 billion dollars in damages because CBS News allegedly misled viewers by airing a promotional clip of former Vice President Harris that differed from what appeared in the full broadcast interview – which apparently caused the president mental anguish. As we explained in our comment submitted in the FCC’s news distortion docket, 60 Minutes’ treatment of Kamala Harris’ interview constituted routine editorial discretion, which is protected by the First Amendment and reaffirmed countless times in case law. President Trump’s lawsuit was meritless.
“President Trump is aware that CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global, is eager to secure approval for its $8 billion merger from the FCC. It seems clear that Paramount prefers to settle and push the merger ahead rather than face a lengthy lawsuit, which would ultimately be overseen by a Trump-appointed, sympathetic judge in Texas. By legitimizing this extortionate lawsuit, CBS has effectively warned all broadcasters that providing a platform to President Trump’s critics comes with potentially devastating financial consequences. This represents a dark moment for press freedom and the First Amendment.”
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